INDEX:
1. to climb up or down something
2. someone who climbs hills or mountains as a sport
3. climbing hills or mountains as a sport
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ UP
↑ DOWN
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1. to climb up or down something
▷ climb /klaɪm/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to move up towards the top of a wall, mountain, tree etc, using your hands and feet :
▪ Most kids love climbing trees.
▪ Trying not to look down, Alan began to climb.
climb up/over/onto etc
▪ Several fans climbed onto the roof of the arena to get a better view.
▪ One of the boys lost his footing as he was climbing up the steepest part of the cliff.
climb down
go down a wall, tree etc using your hands and feet
▪ The burglar escaped by climbing down a drainpipe.
▷ scale /skeɪl/ [transitive verb] especially written
to climb to the top of something very high, especially something that is very difficult or dangerous to climb :
▪ Somehow the men had scaled the twenty-foot wall without setting off the alarm.
▪ Rescuers had to scale a one-thousand-foot cliff before they could reach the injured climber.
▷ clamber /ˈklæmbəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to climb in an awkward way or with difficulty, but moving fairly quickly :
clamber up/down/to etc
▪ At last we saw the two girls clambering down the slope to safety.
▪ Hundreds of people clambered to the roof of the building to watch the fire spread.
▷ shin up/down British /shinny up/down American /ˌʃɪn ˈʌp, ˈdaʊn, ˌʃɪni ˈʌp, ˈdaʊn/ [transitive phrasal verb not in passive]
to climb up or down something tall and narrow such as a pipe, tree, or rope, by wrapping your legs around it and pulling yourself up with your arms :
▪ I locked myself out of the house and had to shinny up a drainpipe to get in.
▪ We watched as small boys shinned up palm trees and brought coconuts down.
▪ Craig shinned down the rope to where we were standing.
▷ ascent /əˈsent/ [countable noun usually singular]
the act of climbing something, especially a mountain :
▪ The men began their final ascent at six o'clock the next day.
▪ He wrote a best-selling book about the first ascent of Everest.
2. someone who climbs hills or mountains as a sport
▷ climber /ˈklaɪməʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who climbs hills or rocks as a sport, especially using special equipment :
▪ The search is still continuing for a group of climbers reported missing in the Scottish highlands.
▪ an experienced climber
▷ mountaineer /ˌmaʊntɪˈnɪəʳ, ˌmaʊntəˈnɪəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who climbs high mountains using special equipment :
▪ Most mountaineers dream of climbing Everest.
▪ Sports equipment stores in Alpine towns cater for the needs of walkers, hikers and mountaineers.
3. climbing hills or mountains as a sport
▷ climbing /ˈklaɪmɪŋ/ [uncountable noun]
the sport of climbing hills or mountains :
▪ Eva’s hobbies are horse-riding, climbing, and aerobics.
▪ strong climbing boots
rock climbing
the sport of climbing up steep rocks and cliffs
▪ Accident insurance does not cover you for dangerous activities such as rock climbing.
▷ mountaineering /ˌmaʊntɪˈnɪ ə rɪŋ, ˌmaʊntəˈnɪ ə rɪŋ/ [uncountable noun]
the sport of climbing high mountains using special equipment :
▪ I joined the mountaineering club when I went to university.